Description

Boundaries—particularly field boundaries—are among the oldest features in an Englishrural landscape. Although a boundary itself is an abstractconcept, the boundary can often be seen by differences in land use on either side.

Boundaries- a real or imagined line that marks the limit of something. Many field boundaries in the central region of England originated with the enclosure of the previous open fields in the 18th or 19th centuries. In a few instances, current field boundaries (particularly in the west country) have been shown to have originated in the Bronze Age or Iron Age. With a few exceptions, however, the attempt to establish pre-Saxon boundaries has been "largely fruitless".

The presence of bluebells in a hedge is often an indicator of an early hedge. It has been proposed that boundary hedges can be dated by hedgerow dating. This involves counting the number of species in a 27 metre section of hedge. In its simplest form each separate species suggests an age of 100 years. A variety of additional complexities have been suggested, but results have been mixed and the technique remains controversial.[1]